NBA bench saves national team

Break between festivals.

Lakers bench.

Kobe sat at the end of the bench, looked up at the game highlights of the first quarter being played on the big screen, his face was a little gloomy.

In just one quarter of the game, he could clearly feel the huge gap between the team and the Thunder.

Both offensive ability and defensive ability are inferior to the Thunder.

Especially the offensive ability!

Kobe is the only offensive point on the Lakers side, and none of the other players has the ability to attack independently.

As for the Thunder team, Qin Feng, Durant, and Westbrook all have the ability to play singles with the ball, and their singles ability is still at the top of the league.

This is a bit overwhelming.

The Thunder don't need too complicated offensive tactics, and the Lakers are a little bit overwhelmed by the Big Three's singles.

tough!No solution!Difficult to defend.

This feeling of being tightly suppressed in the game made Kobe very unhappy, and he was eager for a powerful helper.

As far as the current lineup configuration of the top teams is concerned, they are equipped with two top offensive players.

The Thunder have two bug-level figures, Qin Feng and Durant.

The Heat have two superstars, James and Wade.

Even the Clippers are now combined into a Paul + Griffin double star lineup.

The lineup of the Lakers seems a bit awkward, although there are two All-Star players in Gasol and Bynum.

But Gasol's competitive state is gradually declining.

And as the trend of shooting three-pointers in the league becomes more and more popular, the role of players in the penalty area in the game is getting lighter and lighter.

The most important thing is that the aging of the Lakers is too serious.

The entire team seemed sluggish and lacked much vitality, especially at the end of the game, when the physically exhausted Lakers players were even more difficult to resist the impact of those young superstars.

"Hey, guys, hold on to the rhythm, don't play fast with the Thunder, let alone be carried away by their rhythm, we have to play our own rhythm and style."

Phil told the substitute players who were about to play.

The players all nodded and then walked onto the court.

The second quarter begins.

The Thunder's lineup is led by Lowry, Redick, and Batum.

The three are important members of the Thunder's bench lineup!

This season Lowry's growth is particularly obvious, playing extremely high efficiency in the case of not much playing time.

Lowry will be a free agent next season.

At the same time, Westbrook's rookie contract is also facing a renewal.

This is not a small test for the Thunder. If Westbrook is renewed with a maximum salary, there will be no salary space to renew Lowry.

Unless you don't hesitate to pay the luxury tax.

But given the urgency of the boss of the Thunder team, he is definitely not willing to spend more money!

Therefore, some media predict that Lowry's departure next season is a certainty, and it is expected that he will seek a contract with an annual salary of around US$[-] million.

Of course, if the Thunder can renew Qin Feng's contract with a maximum salary, then Westbrook must be abandoned.

But now that Qin Feng clearly won't renew his contract with the Thunder, the Thunder management doesn't have this trouble, and can concentrate on dealing with Westbrook.

With the strength Bi Yiwei Shao has shown now, he can get a contract with the same maximum salary as Durant, which is expected to be around 5 million US dollars in five years.

So the Thunder's management will have a lot of heavy work to do during this summer's offseason.

Closer to home.

After Lowry dribbled the ball for halftime, he used his body to squeeze Steve Blake and broke through. Facing Gasol's defense, he circled the penalty area and then ran out to the outside line. When the defensive player didn't follow up in time, he stopped immediately outside the three-pointer and shot a three-pointer.

The basketball arced high.

Swish.

Hollow into the net.

Lakers offense.

Blake dribbled past half court and passed the basketball to Sessions.

This player was one of the important signings of the Lakers during the offseason last summer!

Sessions averaged 12.8 points per game for the Lakers this season, making him the team's fourth-leading scorer, second only to Kobe Bryant, Bynum and Gasol.

Moreover, Sessions is the only player on the Lakers with the ability to attack independently, except for Kobe.

At this time, Sessions broke through to the penalty area at an extremely fast speed and completed a throw.

Swish.

Hollow into the net.

Thunder offensive round.

After Lowry and Perkins completed the pick-and-roll, they broke through to the penalty area to attract defense, and then passed the basketball to Redick, who ran to the left at a 45-degree angle.

Redick catches and shoots.

The basketball draws a perfect arc.

Swish.

Hollow into the net.

The Thunder continued to maintain an efficient shooting rate from beyond the three-point line.

In the offensive round of the Lakers, Sessions still opened the singles, and after consecutive changes of direction and breakthroughs failed, he passed the basketball back to Blake's hands.

Blake passes the basketball to Gasol in the penalty area.

Gasol played against Perkins in singles. Although he can't stand against the latter, as a European player, his offensive skills are very comprehensive and will not be restricted by physical fitness.

Since the top is immobile, Gasol is flexible and turns around to complete a mid-range jumper.

Swish.

Hit steadily.

The audience cheered again and again.

I didn't expect that watching the substitutes play games would be so exciting!

The two sides entered a stalemate.

Except for Batum's poor touch, the Thunder's other players have contributed steadily, while the Lakers rely on Gasol and Sessions to open the situation.

It took nearly half a quarter.

Both teams have replaced the main lineup.

The Thunder began to exert their strength in the second half of the second quarter. Durant and Qin Feng succeeded in consecutive singles and could not be restrained at all.

Westbrook also performs zombie jumpers from time to time.

It is worth mentioning that Westbrook's performance in jump shots this season is also amazing, shooting nearly 45% of his mid-range shots, the highest in his career.

And his signature stunt zombie jumper is unique in the league.

On the Lakers side, Kobe and Bynum also made frequent shots, but the audience felt that they were still suppressed by Qin Feng and Durant.

The first half is over.

73: 59.

The Thunder scored 73 points at halftime, while the Lakers only scored 59 points, so the former gained a 14-point lead.

A long intermission passed.

The second half of the game begins.

The Lakers took the initiative to make adjustments, replacing Fisher, and mentioned Sessions to the starting position as the starting point guard.

In this way, the offensive ability of the Lakers' starting lineup will be enhanced.

In addition to Bryant, Sessions also has the ability to tear the Thunder's defense.

If all the offensive burden is given to Kobe, it will greatly consume his physical strength. Maybe the game will not reach the end, and Kobe's physical strength will be exhausted.

After Sessions made his debut, Kobe also consciously passed the basketball into his hands, while he settled himself in the bottom corner to conserve his strength.